


Not Quite Like A FPS

by Anonymous



Category: A3! (Video Game)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Guns, M/M, Mild Spoiler For Part 3 of the Main Story, Original Character Death(s), Pre-Relationship, Spies & Secret Agents
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-04
Updated: 2021-03-04
Packaged: 2021-03-15 18:26:51
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 4
Words: 18,144
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29812563
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/
Summary: “I can tell you everything and you can make up your mind…” Tilting his eyes up from watching Chikage’s work, Hisoka’s sole visible eye meets with his. “Chikage’s right but you shouldn’t just step into this without knowing what it is. Winter troupe agreed to carry my crimes with me… but that didn’t involve me dragging them into them.”There go his hopes that they’d tell him not to get further involved.“Alright, hit me.” Nerves run through him as he speaks the word, it’s so unlike himself to feel nerves like that at anything.
Relationships: Mikage Hisoka/Settsu Banri
Comments: 2
Kudos: 9
Collections: A3! Big Bang 2021, Anonymous





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Written as part of the A3! Big Bang!
> 
> This is essentially an action movie with a kiss at the end except it's a fanfic and not a movie.

“I dunno how to make all that kinda shit yet, Azuma-san.” Casting his eye over bottles of spirits, he reaches for his phone in his pocket. Google should know, he can wing this. “Gimme a sec though, I can probably pull it off.”

The bar had been packed earlier, to the point where he’d been dragged in as the only person old enough who wasn’t already too busy (or too drunk) to fill the shift. Doesn’t mean he knows anything about mixing drinks though. While he’d definitely done his share of drinking in parks while underage and looking for meaning in his life, there’s a difference between buying beer from a conbini and making cocktails. Having only recently turned 20, he’s one of the worst choices out of any of the adults to be doing this. At least for most of the night it’d been Hisoka and Guy behind the bar with himself clearing and cleaning dishes.

“It’s so easy, Banri. It’s quiet now, you can let me behind to show you.” Breaking off into a giggle, Azuma rests his chin in a hand and stares up at him. “Perhaps you should join me for a drink yourself, you’ve worked so hard tonight after all, I do like a hardworking man.”

Azuma, is one of the aforementioned too-drunk-to-step-in-and-help people. Not that Banri can really tell the difference between him sober and how he is now. He’s just as flirty and just as giggly as he is at any time.

“You’re still drunk, Yukishiro, you’re not making drinks.” Guy’s voice calls from out the back. “Settsu, I can give you lessons during your spare time if you think you’ll want to take on more shifts.”

“Yeah that might be cool.” Running through the list of ingredients and instructions, it all looks simple enough. He really just needs access to the bar and google if it’s all this easy. “Not gunna lie though, uni’s got me tied up most of the time these days so I can’t really do this often.”

His schedule is pretty rough but it’s not all bad; it’s nice to have the challenge. He’s getting to meet all kinds of new people too, from other theatre students to people in Kazunari’s crowd. When he looks back at the Banri who’d joined Mankai, he hardly recognizes him.

These days it feels like everything’s just started to fall into place. University and acting both keep him on his toes and the crew at Mankai are a better group of friends than any of the delinquents he’d hung out with; even if Autumn troupe are a bunch of ex-delinquents themselves. Scooping ice into a cocktail shaker, he scans the bottles again for what he needs. While they’d had to open a fake host club for him to study for his role in Welcome to Akebono-so, he’ll be sorted for any bartender rolls if he can pick up a few more shifts here.

“I can take care of that.” Guy’s voice gets louder as he joins the two of them out the front. “You go check on Mikage, it’s been a while and I’m concerned he may have fallen asleep out back.”

“Got it, boss.” It’s a shame to step back and let Guy take over, he’d been kinda looking forward to giving it a shot. 

Sliding his phone back into his pocket, Banri heads for the back door, where he’s definitely going to find Hisoka passed out beside the bag of empty bottles he’d been bringing out here. He’s a surprisingly good worker when he manages to keep awake; almost scarily good. There’s a gleam to his visible eye as he takes care of drinks and carries trays that says he’s completely alert and switched on. It’s something he doesn’t see a lot of unless Hisoka’s on stage. 

Bottles clink loudly against one another, drowning out the soundtrack of Zafran music as he swipes up another bag on his way to the door. They’re heavier than they look and noisy as fuck but he’s on his way so he may as well. Carry a bag of bottles out and carry a human body back in. Smiling at his own train of thought he pushes the door open, ready for the sounds of the night to replace the music from inside.

As soon as the door’s open, the sounds around him do change but it’s not chattering drunks carrying over from the street that mixes in with the music playing behind him. An impact, a grunt, skin making contact with skin, a fight? Well it is about the time of night when that kind of thing ends up happening. Despite how well behaved everyone in the bar had been tonight, there’s no telling when a disagreement over something dumb might turn to flying fists between some people. Is Hisoka just sleeping through this? Given how lively things can get at the dorms that wouldn’t be too surprising really.

Closing the door behind him, he turns his head around to the direction of the sounds and the sight he sees isn’t at all what he expects. Hang on, he’s seeing this correctly, right? Fights aren’t new to him, he’s got more on his record than he really should to be honest, but what he expected was drunk patrons who’d gotten a bit too heated.

Not Hisoka landing a kick square in the middle of a stranger’s chest before stepping backwards out of range.

Not Hisoka letting out a hiss of pain as a lunge towards him sees a knife slicing into his hip, only just dodging what could have been a serious blow.

Not the practiced way he keeps fighting, ignoring the wound as blood seeps through his uniform to keep fighting the assailant off. 

His mind goes into auto-pilot, shock at the scene he’s watching mixing with years of practice fighting himself. He’s acting on his instincts but not even thinking them through. Reaching into the bag of bottles he comes out with an empty wine bottle. Perfect. The guy battling Hisoka seems way too distracted by trying not to lose his knife to the tiny guy to even notice Banri, which makes his job easy. Adrenaline starting to pump through him, he lifts the bottle behind his head, before giving a strong throw. 

By the time the guy notices and goes to dodge, it’s too late. Jumping down the few stairs to street level Banri’s already on his way over as he hears the collision. Not quite a bull’s eye but good enough; the bottle hasn’t quite got him straight on, but it’s got him out of step. Sweet. That’s what it takes in situations like this sometimes. He can read confusion on the attackers face as he throws himself right in and raises his hands into fists. It’s been a while since he fought last but working together, he knows between him and Hisoka, they’ve got it in the bag. Hisoka’s precise as hell and scarily fast, something that isn’t as unexpected as it should be. If Banri were still bumming around looking for a tough fight, Hisoka would be on that list now (and he can’t say with confidence that he’d beat him).

A groan of pain reaches his ears as his knuckles connect with the guy’s cheek in a powerful blow. Despite the fact he’s grown past this stage of his life, a smile pulls at his lips as he pulls back to go for another. 

“Not so tough now that there’s two of us, huh?” 

Another sound of pain leaves the guy and Banri stops in place as he takes in what’s actually going on.

Wait.

_What?_

In a terrifyingly polished movement, Hisoka pulls the guy’s own knife out of his stomach, not even pausing for a second as he follows the first wound up mercilessly. He can hear his own heart beat in his ears, a chilling terror rushing through him as it dawns on him that this isn’t just some thug with a blade. He didn’t just pick a random target and Hisoka isn’t just some unfortunate soul who caught his gaze either.

Heat splatters Banri’s uniform as Hisoka slices through the man’s neck and the sickeningly strong scent of iron fills the alleyway. The blood spraying from the deep wound is like something out of a slasher film, something you’re only meant to see when it’s special effects and movie magic. This isn’t something you’re meant to see in real life, but frozen to the spot, all Banri can do is watch. Watch both wounds painting the stranger’s body in deep crimson as he bleeds out rapidly. Watch as Hisoka lets the body fall to the ground. Watch as a member of their theatre company, rather than seeming at all disturbed that he’s just killed someone, begins to search the body in a detached manner.

“Is he dead?” It’s a stupid question but it’s all that he can think to ask as Hisoka lifts a gun from the corpse, checking it over before tucking it into the back of his waistband and covering it with his vest.

“Yeah.” The word comes out in such a matter of fact manner that Banri almost wants to laugh. Fuck, who would be wanting to laugh after seeing that? The weight of the situation isn’t processing properly at all. Everything that just happened is some kinda fucked up blur.

This is just a dream, right? Sure some of the members have ties to crime and histories of violence but he never expected to end up watching someone from the company take another person’s life – no matter how much Chikage might make jokes about that sort of thing. Even when he was beating guys to a pulp he never took things far enough for their injuries to be life threatening. Hisoka hadn’t even hesitated. Hisoka. Hisoka, who he kinda knew had some kind of shady past (no one is _that_ good at darts) but never would have expected to see doing something like that.

A gun is silently shoved into his own hands and he feels almost stupid, just following suit and hiding it as Hisoka had. Isn’t this just implicating him in the murder? Wait. Murder. Holy shit. Life’s been falling into place for him this past few years and now he’s gone and gotten caught up in a crime far worse than any of the ones he’d committed out of boredom. Shit. They need to tell Guy about this.

“We need to get going, they’ll send back up if he doesn’t report back soon.” Hisoka’s words come fast, a confidence in them that is perhaps more chilling than what Banri’s just seen. 

“Get going where?” As the words leave his mouth a hand wraps around his wrist.

He gets no answer as Hisoka breaks into a sprint and he’s pulled along to follow. Even with the height he’s got on him, it’s impossible to keep up the pace he clearly wants to run at. They can’t just leave a body outside Guy’s bar. Fuck. He’s well and truly fucked now. He’d always thought if he got arrested it’d be for shoplifting or trespassing or beating someone up. Not for being an accessory to murder. Running is only making it worse. Maybe if he’d done law rather than theatre he’d be able to figure out a way to spin this where they don’t end up doing life in prison. Maybe they can get to Zafra before the cops are put on their trail and take refuge there.

“You’ve got your phone on you right?” Hisoka snaps him out of his own thoughts with more clear and seriously delivered words.

“Huh, yeah?” Are they going to turn themselves in?

“Good, ring Guy, tell him there’s a body behind the bar. Get him to tell Chikage to deal with it and meet us at the hideout, say I’ve been compromised and no, it’s the other organisation. Guy knows about me, he’ll understand without explaining.” It’s hard to miss the fact that outside of acting, Hisoka and Chikage were obviously up to some weird shit but seeing it in action is something else. “Is your wallet with you too?”

“Sure and nope.” Hisoka drops his wrist and suddenly it feels ten times harder to keep up with him. Especially as he unlocks his phone and goes into his contacts. “Got a credit card in the back of my phone case though.”

“No good, it’ll leave a trail.” Sakyo may work for the Yakuza and Omi’s bike gang past sounds far more violent than Banri’s own rough years but Hisoka is definitely a bigger criminal than either of them ever were with how naturally he’s handling things.

Bringing his phone to his ear he almost misses Hisoka making a left turn. His stamina is impressive. Banri feels like his legs are going to collapse under him the second he stops moving from keeping this up. Ringing plays into his ear as he waits for Guy to pick up. At least Guy might know what to do in this sort of situation having been a servant of a would-be king. At the very least given his temperament, he’s not going to freak out.

 _“Settsu, where are you?”_ Guy seems none-the-wiser to what’s going on. _“Is Mikage not out there?”_

“No time for that, Guy-san, there’s a body behind your bar.” Fuck that sounds ridiculous to say. “A dead one, Hisoka-san killed it. He says Chikage-san should deal with it then meet us at the hideout and to uh, tell him he’s been compromised and that it’s the other organisation.”

 _“I see.”_ Despite managing to keep his voice mostly even, the tone of concern in his voice is clear. However, he questions nothing. _“Do you require my help beyond this?”_

“That’s all Hisoka-san said for now. We’re in the middle of running at the moment so I’ll get back to you.”

_“Stay safe.”_

With that the line goes dead and it’s a relief not to have to talk. He feels like his lungs are about to explode if they have to run much further. He may be fit but Hisoka’s on another level when it comes to running. As he shoves his phone back into his pocket, relief floods him as he notices Hisoka slowing down as he approaches a side street. Keeping up with one of the company’s inhumanly fast members is a really, really hard ask.

“So what’s next?” He can hear himself panting slightly as he catches up to him, Hisoka himself seems completely unfazed. Maybe a little more pale than usual but that’s… wait. Holy shit, he got slashed. He got slashed and he’s been out running Banri like it’s nothing. Is he even human? “Dude are you okay? The knife got you, right?”

Eyes travelling down to the wound, blood has soaked what of the would-be white shirt peeks through the rip in his vest. Slowly Hisoka raises his own hand to his hip touching it through the fabric with a look of concentration on his face. From how little he reacts, Banri would hazard a guess that this is hardly the worst injury he’s taken during a fight which is both impressive and terrifying. 

“It’s not too deep…” There’s the Hisoka he’s used to again, though he’s more familiar with him talking about sleeping or marshmallows than being stabbed. “What’s the time?”

Checking the smart watch on his wrist, he frowns. If a miracle could have happened while they were running and made it a time when trains were going, that would have been great. It makes sense though, Guy’s bar isn’t really the kind of place you’d stay at until trains start again and they’d started settling down around the time people would have had to leave to catch the last ones. It’s not like Banri even knows where they’re going, but he has a feeling wherever it is, it isn’t that close to where they are now.

“Trains won’t be running.” He can’t read the expression on Hisoka’s face.

“We need to go to a place with more bars…” He’s only confused for a split second before it registers. 

“Wallet then taxi, right.” Makes sense, taking someone’s wallet will solve their cash problem easy. It’s not something he thought Hisoka would be suggesting they do together, but after the whole killing someone thing, he really shouldn’t be surprised. Both of them are splattered with blood but at this time of night they can at least play it off as having been to a costume night somewhere. Banri’s slightly disturbed by just how easily he’s keeping a hold on things right now.

They aren’t too far from the next area of nightlife here but as Hisoka turns to look at both ends of the street they’re on before nodding to himself, he has a feeling they’re in for another run.

\-----

“So this is what? Some kinda secret assassin base and you just leave it unlocked?” The inside doesn’t look that impressive either as lights flicker to life. He’s not an expert on secret hideouts or anything but as he takes off his shoes and moves into the main room properly, it isn’t quite what spy movies had led him to expect. “Isn’t there usually like, retina scans and shit to get into these places.”

“Chikage can unlock it remotely, he’ll be watching the camera feed…” Hisoka’s lips press together tightly as he brings out the gun he’d taken and brings it in front of his face. “And I’m not active anymore, I don’t have a key.”

Pulling out the one he’d been given, he weighs it in his hand. It feels heavier than the props they’ve used on stage but perhaps that’s just because he knows this one’s real. While the replicas have always been of great quality, there’s something different about handling a real gun. That guy had intended to kill, there’s no way he’d be carrying fake weapons. In the space of what had to be an hour tops, Banri’s gone from ex-high school delinquent, to getting himself caught up in some seriously dangerous shit. Speaking of which, really wild double life aside, if Hisoka’s not active anymore then this is even weirder.

“That why they wanna take you out then?” There’s clearly something Hisoka can see that he can’t as he gives the gun in his hand a lingering look before leaving it on a low coffee table. “You know too much and are a threat ‘cause of it kinda thing?” 

There’s so much here that he feels like he should be reacting to differently but he feels a little numb to it all right now. Bluffing confidence and pretending like he isn’t only maintaining a thin wall between that and letting it all seriously hit him is the only way he feels like he can cope. This is kinda cool in a way, right? Like a video game. He’s played enough games with secret organisations and agents to know how this works. He’ll be fine. Yeah. He’s got this, it’s all sweet.

“There’s different organisations.” As he speaks, he moves across the room to a cupboard. “The one Chikage and I worked for thinks I’m dead… Before that I was a double agent in another organisation too, that man was one of theirs.”

Shelves filled with containers of medical equipment come into view as the door swings open and Banri hears himself suck in a breath. Hisoka’s indifference to the wound makes so much sense seeing just how stocked this place is and the way his hands move between containers pulling equipment out without even looking is just as telling. Of course they can’t just get him to the hospital if there are people looking for Hisoka. That makes sense. Banri’s no doctor but he can’t just stand by as Hisoka tries to take that role on himself. The cut he has is definitely nasty but it’s not like it’ll need major surgery.

“Here, lemme help out. I’ve only patched up small shit before but I can be some use.” Probably, it’s not like he knows what Hisoka’s done in the past and the revelations he’s getting tonight are way beyond any expectations.

“You can clean it, Chikage should be here soon, he can stitch it up.” A couple of disposable bottles are pushed into his hand. Saline solution. It makes sense that he’d wait for someone who knows what he’s doing but at the same time it’s kinda a buzzkill. Banri could definitely pull off sewing up a wound.

“Fine.” Stepping backwards, he lets Hisoka close the cupboard. “If he gets held up though, I can give it a shot. Should be like most things, yeah?”

The bathroom isn’t anything fancy, a toilet, a sink and a western style shower cubicle. It’s functional though and the vanity has just enough space for Hisoka to balance the supplies on it. The adrenaline of the trip here having faded from both of them, he can now see how much of a toll this has left on Hisoka. His hands shake slightly as he moves to undo the buttons of his vest and while he’s usually pale, his face is drained of what little colour it does have. 

Vest opened and falling to the floor, the reason for that becomes obvious. While some of the red staining his shirt disappears below his apron, it’s climbed up halfway to his chest as well, saturating the fabric in a mix of dried and still wet blood. As the apron joins the vest on the floor, the fabric it reveals is in a similar state. There’s no way this thing isn’t deep and if this is shallow by Hisoka’s standards, he’d hate to see what he does count as a serious wound.

Fabric clings to dried blood, fibres doing their best to remain caught in the wound as he slowly works his white shirt open. Only a small gasp of pain leaves his lips as a particularly stubborn piece finally peels itself off; he gives very few signs of actually being bothered by it. With the two sides peeling back from each other, leaving the inside is open for the room to see, shining pink intercepted with the dark red of congealed blood. Even having seen the blood staining his shirt, Banri hadn’t been prepared for that. He doesn’t quite know what he’d been prepared for, nothing that’s happened since he stepped out the back of Guy’s bar has been something he’d ever imagined happening.

As though he’s fallen into a strange trance, reality feels a little detached as Hisoka moves to pull his shirt off entirely. They’ve both been in the same company for years now but being in different troupes, it’s not like he’s had that much to do with him before. Tonight it feels like he’s speedrunning getting to know him properly in ways he’d never seen coming. 

Casting his eyes over his back as Hisoka reaches for a towel, even the sight he’s viewing now tells more than he’s ever cared to learn. He’d never paid too much attention to him on the rare occasion they’ve been in the bath at the same time. If he had, he’d definitely have noticed the myriad of scars that mark his pale skin and the muscles that line his slender frame; not enough to detract from it but enough to be out of place on someone who does nothing but sleep and eat sweets. Most of the scars, just like the wound on his hip, look like they could have been life threatening if he hadn’t dodged the blow. There’s a strange temptation to reach out and run his fingertips over what has to be a bullet wound but he catches himself. That’s just weird.

“Use both the tubes to wash it.” Hisoka’s voice breaks him out of his thoughts and suddenly, the reality of the wound is back on his mind. 

Glancing at his own hands and the flecks of the victim’s blood that stain them, he bends over to the sink to wash them off. As his eyes move back to Hisoka’s hip, they narrow as he takes in how the skin is mottled with red leading down the open mouth of the slice itself. He does seem to have lost a lot of blood.

“You sure you’re okay? This thing’s pretty nasty.” Shaking his hands dry, he takes up one of the bottles of saline, twisting and snapping the top off. 

“It’s not that bad…” He doesn’t know if he should be concerned about the sleepy tone in Hisoka’s tone or not given that’s how he is 99% of the time anyway. 

“Jus’ lemme know if this hurts or anything.” He definitely feels a little out of his depth as he sinks to his knees at Hisoka’s side. Not because this is going to be something he can’t do or anything, but because now, eye level with the wound, he can’t deny how bad it looks. Placing one of his own hands onto the towel below the wound, he lifts the solution.

A small hiss leaves Hisoka’s lips as the first jet of saline washes over the wound. Red falls away from his skin in a steady waterfall towards the towel and slowly the metallic smell that had hit his nose as he’d first knelt down begins to wane. There’s no words between them as he works. Flushing the wound thoroughly and feeling the towel dampen under his hand, he feels his tongue peek out from between his lips as he concentrates on ensuring things are as clean as possible. Asides from the sounds of the liquid being squirted from the bottle, only their own breathing fills the room and there’s a strange sort of tension to it. One Banri can’t place, nor can really think about as he moves to the second bottle of solution. He can definitely say it’s doing its job, but the way the flesh inside shines a dark pink is a little sickening.

There’s a jolt from Hisoka just as the sound of knocking reaches Banri’s ears. Both actions happening at once put him on guard, Chikage is meant to be meeting with them but the way Hisoka had reacted has him worried that it may not be who they’re expecting at all. The chance of them being followed is so low, though. Both heads turning to face the main room of the hideout, he gets a glance of the serious expression shadowing Hisoka’s features… before it softens as the knocks finish.

“It’s Chikage...” After the shock the knocking had given him, Banri finds a small laugh leaving his lips. There’s something so funny about people living a life like this having something as mundane as a secret knock.

“Had me worried for a moment there.” Using up the rest of the solution he shakes his head to himself. He’s kinda glad for the interruption and a new person being on the scene. Especially when Chikage is apparently still active and hopefully has an idea of what to do.

\-----

“It’s definitely them, then?” Chikage’s movements are practiced and precise as he works steadily to close the wound. It’s definitely far from his first time having done so and despite Hisoka hissing with every puncture through his flesh, he too seems practiced at being sewn up without anything to numb the pain.

“You suck at this.” Hisoka however, does have his complaints. From the moment Chikage had stepped inside, they’ve been bickering on and off like this. “He didn’t make it hurt at all…”

Somehow Banri feels more lost right now than he has all night, which is weird because slowly questions are getting answered but every time Hisoka and Chikage step away from the main topic, their conversation becomes hard to follow.

“He had anesthetic, which I don’t because there’s not really a point in having a stock of it anymore.” Chikage comments back, hands continuing to move at the same speed as he ties off another stitch. “Stop complaining and answer the question.”

“Jus’ so I got a better view on this all, mind explaining it a bit clearer?” Unless they’re planning to leave him out of the loop but it feels a bit too late for that now that he’s been involved this much. “Otherwise once you're done with this I’ll shower and then head back to the dorms in the mornin’. Got a couple of assignments due next week that I should be workin’ on instead of getting’ dragged into whatever this is.”

Though as he says those words he knows he doesn’t mean them. While parts of tonight have been terrifying and have thrown him completely into a world that’s not supposed to exist outside of a fairly cliché FPS release, the thrill seeker in him that he thought he’d grown past is itching to be a part of it. It would be smarter for Banri to step back from this and to head back to the dorms but no matter how much he’s grown as a person, there’s a spark that’s been lit; one that yells at him that if he bunks on this, he’s going to spend the rest of his life wondering what he missed out on.

At the same time, he hopes they both tell him he can’t get involved so at least he knows it isn’t his fault for missing out on the rush of whatever’s going on. He doesn’t want to kill, he doesn’t want to watch more people die and he doesn’t want to end up on the run for the rest of his life from shady organisations. He just managed to find meaning in his life and committing crimes far beyond the scope of his delinquency could really come back to bite his ass in the future. The two sides of him, the person he was and the person he is now, are conflicted.

“You would be an asset.” Chikage answers fast and confident, almost as though he’s thought about how useful Banri would be in this kind of situation before. “We’ll need a third person and I can’t call for back-up from another agent as the Organisation believes Hisoka is dead. Guy would be more useful than you, but we discussed things when I stopped by the bar. We both agreed that the company needs someone trained back at the dorms to keep an eye on everyone unless they try and target them.”

There’s another hiss of pain from Hisoka as he pushes the needle through his skin again.

“I can tell you everything and you can make up your mind…” Tilting his eyes up from watching Chikage’s work, Hisoka’s sole visible eye meets with his. “Chikage’s right but you shouldn’t just step into this without knowing what it is. Winter troupe agreed to carry my crimes with me… but that didn’t involve me dragging them into them.”

There go his hopes that they’d tell him not to get further involved.

“Alright, hit me.” Nerves run through him as he speaks the word, it’s so unlike himself to feel nerves like that at anything.

“Chikage and I were part of an Organisation as agents, Chikage still works for them…” That tracks with that else he’s heard tonight “We came to Japan as part of a mission. Chikage became Chikage and I was undercover as a double agent.”

“I was overseas when things went wrong, we were betrayed and Au- one of us didn’t make it.” Chikage adds in, reaching for a dressing to cover the now stitched together wound. “This guy drunk a memory loss potion and went over a cliff, in the Organisation’s mind both of them died that night. I thought at the time that he’d betrayed me to escape, but I found out the truth after joining the Company.”

Despite not looking away from his work once, the way Chikage delivers his words betrays the more detached façade Banri can tell he’s trying to keep up as he says them. The events he’s rushing through must have hurt deeply and he knows he’s not really in a place to pry too deeply into those. Nothing that Banri’s hearing is too shocking compared to everything else that’s happened tonight, in fact it would have been nice to know this before he’d been thrown into the events of tonight.

“Right, but this other lot Hisoka-san was working with don’t think he’s dead then.” He gives his own inference from what he’s been told. “Or they’ve found out he’s still alive from a play poster or some shit and they’ve come to take him out cause he knows too much.”

“It’s probably one of those.” As Chikage’s hands move away, Hisoka bends down to pick up his shirt, blinking at it before dropping it again. “Chikage I need a shirt... and marshmallows.”

“I have one of those things.” Chikage doesn’t miss a beat in responding to him. “I’ll do what I can to dig up information on which it is. If it’s the latter then it makes the company as a whole a target if this isn’t handled carefully. We may have to have Hisoka lay low and stay out of the public eye for some time after too.”

There’s something strangely comforting about seeing Hisoka act demanding even here too. Filing back out into the main room, he heads for the couch. As he tries to sit casually, legs spreading and arm landing over the backrest, he ends up stuck in his own mind. He can hear Chikage and Hisoka discussing what Chikage is willing to lend him from another room but it doesn’t really register. Chikage’s words had more or less sealed his fate. Not just for the thrill of it all and the rush that life or death situations give, but for the sake of the company as well. Hisoka isn’t part of his own troupe, neither is Chikage. He doesn’t have that much to do with either of them but as a whole, Mankai Company have come to be a kind of family. Theatre helped him find motivation in his life and a reason for living, he owes it to the company to protect it if he can.

As Hisoka joins him on the couch, tucking his knees up in front of him and wrapping his arms around his legs, he looks nothing like a man who could take a life so easily. Scars and lean muscle hidden underneath an oversized turtleneck, it hits him just how absurd this all is. Regardless of who he’s been, Hisoka is just a normal guy now, one with an accurate throw and fast-as-hell legs, but not a spy. He’s an actor who works in Guy’s bar, who can be found sleeping when he’s not doing either of those things.

“Once we’ve decided on if you’re coming with us or not, I’ll start putting things into motion.” Taking the chair beside the couch, Chikage takes the chance to loosen his tie. Whatever he’d been up to tonight, Banri doubts he’s had a chance to stop by the dorms since leaving work. “It’s unlikely they know the location of this place but we can’t risk it.”

“Before that, I know you’re both secret agents or some shit now and some dangerous people are after Hisoka-san tryna kill him.” Looking between them, he gets a nod from each. His mind is pretty much made up but he needs to get this off his chest. “But while I’ll be able to pick up stuff easy, I don’t really wanna end up killing anyone. I’ve done a lot of stuff I ain’t so proud of but that’s kinda crossing a line.”

“That’s not something I’d want you doing either. We can have Hisoka making any move that might result in killing but I can’t make guarantees. You’ll have to be prepared to do whatever it takes and I can’t promise your safety either.” Chikage speaks. “However it’s easiest and safest to plan our moves if we have two people in the field and one running back up watching over everything.”

From the look Hisoka and Chikage share at those words, he has a feeling that’s exactly how they used to operate.

“If I do this, will I be on someone’s hit list in the future?” 

“We’ll disguise your identity, wipe you from camera feeds and have anyone who does see your face taken out.” It’s a little chilling to hear Chikage say such a thing without a hint that he might be joking. “If they found Hisoka through Mankai then it will be safer to take them down now, rather than let a future happen where they might kidnap members in order to extract information on his whereabouts. With my own organisation I can obscure information and keep him hidden, but I’ve never worked for who’s after him now.”

“So what’s the plan then?” Chikage sounds like he at least has something brewing already. “If your organisation let him go cause they think he’s dead, you thinkin’ of pulling the same thing here?”

As he speaks the words, a small smile settles on Chikage’s lips.

“Sounds good…” Hisoka turns his head to face him, eye barely able to keep open as his chin rests on his knees. “Better to let them get the news I’m dead than to try off everyone who knows I’m not.”

“I agree.” Chikage nods to himself before pulling his phone from his pocket and glancing at the screen. “I’ll start to plan around that. Banri, you need to get cleaned up.”

Only now that the immediate urgency has settled down, does it dawn on him just how gross he is. Blood and sweat both are soaked into his clothes and dried on his skin, he attempts to brush a hand through his hair before giving up. Chikage’s right, he does need to get cleaned up. Pushing himself from the couch he glances between the two of them, Hisoka dozing off with specks of blood still littering his hair and face and Chikage moving from the chair he’s just sat in to a desktop computer. Banri’s going to have a hell of a lot to reflect on and work through as he showers, he’s seriously out of his depth right now.


	2. Chapter 2

Remote is one way to describe the location they eventually end up at. The next is: unused. The air is stale as he drags a heavy suitcase inside, a trail of imprints left in the dust on the wooden floor as he enters. It’s pretty big though, far bigger than the apartment-sized hideout they’d all met up at. Whatever strings Chikage has managed to pull, he’s at least got them somewhere roomy for the time being. As he kicks off his shoes and ventures further inside, the suitcase of dubiously legal contents he’s been dragging gets left forgotten. Furniture, a couch. Ignoring that it too is covered in a layer of dust, he flops down. Between showering and starting their marathon of jumping between various taxis, he’d had a chance to get some sleep but he hadn’t been able to get a wink of it. Every time his eyes had fallen closed, his memory had begun to replay the footage of the attacker’s last moments. To put it plainly, he’s exhausted.

“You’re not going to be much use if you’re that tired.” Chikage’s voice reaches him as the other two follow him into the room. “Get some sleep, we can get you started with training once you wake up.”

Hisoka seems keen on following Chikage’s advice. A pillow is pulled to his chest as he takes a seat in an armchair and his eyes flutter closed easily.

“I’d love to but it’s kinda hard to manage after what I saw last night.” He tries not to seem too bothered by it as he pulls out his phone, before sighing at the low battery warning and dropping it down beside him. “Tried to the whole time we were on our way here.”

“I’ve got something that can help with that.” Of course he does, nothing is a surprise any more. Though it is a relief. He doesn’t know how Hisoka can manage to sleep so easily after taking a life but he guesses it must get easier to stomach the more you do it. Either that, or not even killing is enough to disrupt his never ending need for sleep.

“Thanks.” Dragging a cushion under his own head, he makes himself as comfortable as possible. There are probably beds here but he can’t be bothered going to explore on his own. “So what’s with this place?”

He throws it out there to both of them, fairly certain Hisoka’s going to ignore him in favour of continuing his nap. Chikage’s unzipping suitcases and rifling through contents already, potentially in search of sleeping medicine, potentially just because he’s keen to get back to working.

“Extra security. The Organisation had it set up so that if we ever needed to get out of the city, we had somewhere to stay while we decided upon our next move.” Chikage’s voice sounds stiffer as he speaks and Banri has a feeling it’s because he’s mentioned the past again. “They know an altered version of what happened in the alley and approved of my request to come out here until I have a clearer view on what’s happening. We’ll have to get things wrapped up quickly so that they don’t send in other agents to try and deal with the problem. This place is going to be good for training too, it’s out of the way enough that no one will hear you firing gunshots.”

Well that’s, comforting? He doesn’t really know what to make of that, nor the fact the place seems to have been purposely chosen so you can shoot a gun and go unheard. He probably shouldn’t dwell on the possible uses of the place asides from just getting out away from someone on their tails. 

“Pretty sweet that they had this all set up for you then.” As Banri speaks, a hand appears in front of his vision, holding a small tablet. “Cool, thanks.”

Reaching up to grab it, he turns it over in his fingers. Not because he thinks Chikage is about to drug him with something harmful, he kinda just wants to see what the thing looks like before he swallows it.

“It won’t harm you, though that said, usually people aren’t even aware they’re taking it. You might be the first person I’ve given one to who’s gotten to see what they look like.” The words have a dangerous edge to them. Given who Chikage is, he’s not at all surprised that he’s got drugs on hand for such reasons, but it’s kind of weird to hear him just admit it like that. “There should be three bedrooms upstairs. Take your pick of them. I don’t sleep much and that thing will fall asleep anywhere.”

A thumb is shoved in Hisoka’s direction as he says ‘ _ thing’  _ but there’s no malice behind it. Looking at the tablet once more, he pushes himself into a seated position. As dodgy as the actual purpose of having this with him is, he’s grateful for it.

“You wouldn’t happen to have a spare charger by the way? My phone’s nearly dead.” Picking it up too, he stands and starts to skim the doors out of the room for where the stairs might be.

“I think it would be best if you let it run out of battery until we return. Anything that can track your location puts you at risk.” 

He really doesn’t want to let his phone run out of battery. Being able to jump into a game and grind for a while is the one real bit of comfort he thought he’d have out here. 

“Aight, cool.” Shoving it into his pocket he hears an irritated sound leave his lips unintentionally. It’s kinda childish but he doesn’t care if Chikage can tell that pisses him off. He’s been through a lot, who gives a damn if he gets annoyed that he can’t use his phone.

NEO has been taking more breaks off front page ranks lately due to university taking up his time but that doesn’t mean he wants to be disconnected from the rest of the world entirely. Whatever, he’s too tired to be thinking about things right now. When he wakes up he can lament the loss of technology properly. He doesn’t give a good night as he walks out of the room in search of a bed. 

\-----

Voices disrupt his slumber, not overly loud, but loud enough to creep into his sleep and start to pull him out of it. Chikage and Hisoka? Oh right, it’s the weekend; Chikage won’t have work. Rubbing his eyes and pushing his hair out of his face, he sits up slowly. Last night’s gotta be the best sleep he’s gotten in ages, weird dreams but really solid and deep. If working at Guy’s bar leads to such a good sleep then he really should work there more often. Stretching his arms sideways rather than up, so that he doesn’t hit the ceiling, he kicks off his blankets and looks towards the ladder.

No ladder. 

Right.

_ Oh. _

Not dreams then. In fact he’s not sure that he dreamt at all. A play by play of the events of the previous night runs through his mind and as each detail flashes past, the feeling of dread in his stomach grows. He really did get caught up in some dangerous shit. It’s too late to back out now though, he can’t wander downstairs and tell them both that he’s changed his mind and won’t help out. He wouldn’t. This is for the sake of members of the company and the company itself. If the skills that have led to Chikage’s speed in escape rooms are any example of how good he is at this shit, then they’re sorted and Hisoka? Well, seeing him in action was enough to let him know that he’s far from just a sleepyhead with great aim.

Once downstairs and with the two of them, things progress fast. He hadn’t expected them to take their time and ease him into things gently, but he also hadn’t expected to almost immediately be handed a gun and told to follow Hisoka.  _ ‘You need to be trained and he needs to get himself back to the level he used to be at. He’ll train you while I do research and planning’.  _ It’s all logical enough but it’s surreal. Just like the one from the night before, there’s a different weight to the weapon than there is with any stage props. 

“…Put it down and sit here.” It’s clear that they had time while he slept to set up targets, he had slept late thanks to Chikage’s drug but they really did get a lot started without him. “You have to know how to breathe.”

Hisoka’s words are weird but he follows along, taking a seat beside him on a wooden bench. While the reason he’s learning to shoot a real gun isn’t that fun, he is interested in seeing just how good his aim is with the real thing.

“I’m breathing right now.” He half jokes, smile faltering as Hisoka’s eye stares right back at his own.

“Not like that… if you can’t stay calm and you have to shoot someone you’ll miss.” Hisoka’s voice is serious. “If anyone needs to die, I’ll do it, but you probably need to immobilise someone or something. Shooting people is hard at first…”

“If I can think of it like a game it should be sweet though right? Pretend I’m playing CoD or some shit to take my mind out of the situation?” He’ll manage to pull this off somehow but he’s pretty sure some breathing exercises aren’t going to be the way he manages to stay calm.

“…Banri.”

He barely has time to think, as soon as Hisoka speaks his name, he’s launching himself at him. Banri blocks with his arms as he tries to use the momentum to tackle him off the seat and onto the ground. It’s a struggle, constantly fighting against a force trying to force him down, but he manages to get to his feet. Hisoka is fast and in his movements he can feel every bit of lithe muscle he’d seen last night working to get a one up on him. It’s not going to work though. Banri’s got the height and size advantage. 

Or so he thinks.

In the seconds that follow he can’t even process what’s happening. Hisoka’s in front of him, then behind him in an instant. An arm is twisted behind his back and his legs give way, his body falling heavily against wooden panelling as Hisoka lands on his back, pinning him in place. It’s almost as if the moments before then were Hisoka playing with him and letting him get cocky before striking for real. Heart beating rapidly in his chest and pain smarting through his body from the heavy landing, all he can do is lay there and try to process the steps he took to get him to the ground. He could throw Hisoka off, but he knows if the other had a knife or a gun, in a real combat situation he’d already be dead.

“I’m out of practice and my hip’s just been sewn up…” Hisoka says slowly as he climbs off him. It’s all he needs to say to get the point across. Banri can’t just treat this like some game and get through. He needs to take what he’s being taught completely seriously.

“I get it, I get it.” Pushing himself from the ground, he tastes blood on his tongue. Must’ve split his lip during the fall. Damn. “Teach me this breathing thing then and then teach me how to shoot.” 

He’s trying to think about this in way that he can swallow easily, but no matter what kinda stupid or pathetic ways be finds, he should still listen to the guy who can get him to the floor just over 12 hours after he’d washed out a nasty knife wound on his hip.

“There’s a whole training menu for you…” Taking his place back on the bench, Hisoka seems completely unruffled by their little wrestle, giving a small yawn as though nothing out of the ordinary is happening. “Chikage said you won’t need to be drugged to sleep tonight.”

There’s a little smile on Hisoka’s lips now as Banri takes his seat back beside him and this time, commits himself to learning things in the order Hisoka’s teaching him in.

\-----

While the view isn’t that much to speak for, it’s nice to be able to take a breather. He’s far enough away from the main rooms of the house to be free from the sounds within or the visual reminders of what he’s here for. Everything going on is a reminder of the seriousness of the situation and what he’s been thrust into. Weapons here, charts and folders there and Chikage’s voice talking on the phone seriously in different languages always adding a grim backing music to it all. It’s challenging, darkly thrilling and makes him feel alive, but it makes him feel too alive. He never thought he’d crave mundane things like he does right now. A night spent on Itaru’s couch doing nothing but clearing as much of a 15 year old game as possible, or even just an essay due at midnight that he’s finishing the last tweaks on. 

A yawn reaches his ears. The sound is far closer than he’d expect it to be but Hisoka’s good at masking his presence without even meaning to. Silent footsteps and breathing seem to come as second nature to him. He doesn’t move in response to knowing he’s there, letting Hisoka come to his side and flop down on the wooden deck beside him. No words are said, but a hand comes up to push his knee down from where he’s leaning on it to make his lap a more acceptable pillow. Allowing him, Banri lets his eyes drift down to take in Hisoka. Rather than sleeping, he also stares out at the trees surrounding them. Even if you’ve worked in this kind of world for years, it can still have quite the effect on you, he guesses.

For a while he just lets silence hang between them. It’s nice to have a moment of inaction. His body aches from the brutal training and there’s a lot still that he’s not letting himself feel emotionally but at least this is kind of a normal scene. He and Hisoka may never have been close at Mankai but his presence like this is comforting.

“Yanno, when I was 17, I’d’ve really liked this whole thing.” He speaks up, not knowing if Hisoka is going to respond. “If I’d been thrown into this shit back then, I woulda been asking Chikage-san to hook me up with how to join.”

“It’s not fun…” Hisoka responds, his voice quiet as he does. “You don’t know when you’ll lose someone or when you’ll die yourself. You’re always on the run and you’re always being someone else…”

He feels sorry for Hisoka, and for Chikage too, for having to live this life. From how long they seem to have been doing this, he doubts either was in much of a position to know what they were getting into when they started. Despite that, he knows the kind of person he was and he knows for a fact that this world would have appealed to him.

“I was doin’ anything to try feel alive back then. I get that it’s a shit life and you guys’ve been through stuff I’ll never understand but,” he lets out a bitter laugh, “I ain’t lying when I say that. I’m glad I found theatre. I’m glad I get to be someone else on stage and then jus’ me off it. I dunno, it’s funny in a dark way. I’m jus’ startin’ to get my life together and becoming someone that’s worth being proud of and this happens. I woulda jumped at this back then. Right now jus’ I’m worried about how much uni I’m missing and how that’s gunna affect my grades.”

“It’s better like that.” Hisoka gives a small yawn before Rolling over in his lap to look Banri in the eye. “You don’t get to leave… once you’re a part of it you work for them until you die, people don’t live long and people who try escape die anyway.”

Images of Hisoka’s bare skin flash through his mind, the myriad of close calls marked permanently on his body. If he hadn’t managed to escape via being thought to be dead, might he actually be now? Even having heard the story of his past and experiencing what he is right now, he knows he’ll never truly know what it’s like to have led the life he has. If Banri hadn’t stepped out of the bar when he had, would Hisoka have been the corpse in that alley? Or would he have still managed to get a one up on the guy he was fighting. That guy had looked really young too, far closer to Banri’s age than Hisoka or Chikage’s. 

“Once we’ve got all this sorted you’ll be free again.” He doesn’t really mean to try and comfort Hisoka, the words just start coming out but it feels like the right thing to do. He’s younger than him and with so much less experience in life so maybe it’s seems stupid that he’s trying to give comfort without truly knowing what he’s talking about. It won't stop him when the words are on the edge of his tongue though. “We’ll get you back to the dorms an’ it’ll all be like normal. You can demand marshmallows and sleep in weird places. I’ll go back to slavin’ over school shit and Chikage-san will-”

He cuts himself off because unlike Hisoka, Chikage is still too tied up in that world to leave.

“Chikage’ll still be annoying…” While Hisoka’s face can be hard to read at times, he can tell from the little smile he gives him that he’s now the one trying to comfort Banri instead.

“Yeah.” Without really paying attention to what his body’s doing, a hand falls into Hisoka’s hair ruffling through the strands as his fingers start to comb through it gently.

Silence falls between them again and while he’s not sure the conversation they just had helps with anything at all, he does know that slowly he’s starting to get closer to Hisoka. It’s a good thing considering the fact they’ll have their lives in each other’s hands when they do make their move. Beyond that, there’s just something soothing about the other, even after learning what he’s capable of.


	3. Chapter 3

Each morning Banri’s muscles feel heavy as he pulls himself out of bed. He likes to think that his body is strong – and experience up until now has proved that – but muscles he wasn’t even aware of previously ache as he drags himself from his bed and heads downstairs to get a coffee and something to serve as breakfast. The training is brutal, physically and mentally. Only four days have passed since they arrived here and already he’s heard enough anecdotes from Chikage and Hisoka’s lives prior to Mankai Company to put him off ever thinking the lives of spies in movies and games seems cool or glamorous ever again. Chikage he isn’t really that surprised by – something about him always suggested he’s involved in some shady stuff – but getting to know Hisoka on this level is eye opening. He’s still sleepy and demands sweets rather than real food but though the physical drills they’re doing and stories he’s hearing, it’s like he’s getting to meet a whole new man.

Lit only by screens, Chikage only gives him a nod in acknowledgement as Banri passes on his way to the kitchen. He seems to be making advances in finding out information on who they’re up against but most of his days are spent with his fingers typing away at one keyboard or another. He slid so easy into the information gathering and planning role that when Hisoka had mentioned Chikage used to be more of a field agent it had surprised him. It’s not that he lacks the physical strength and muscle to make it in the field, but he seems far too at home in what he’s doing right now to have only completely switched into the role since his previous team of three had become a team of one.

“Mornin’, Hisoka-san.” Slumped over the table and still in his clothes from the night before, Banri has to question if he just slept in the dining room. A yawn leaves Banri’s lips as he reaches into the almost bare cupboard and brings out a large tin of instant coffee that’s definitely expired according to the used-by date, but still seems good. It’s nothing compared to the carefully chosen bean blends and barista made coffee he usually drinks but it’s caffeine which he sorely needs to keep him going right now. There’s a smaller tin of an overly sweet hot chocolate powder in the back too, which he also pulls out; it probably tastes like crap but he might as well try making Hisoka something while he’s fixing himself a coffee. “You sleep there last night?”

“Mmm… too early.” Merely turning his head to face the other direction, Hisoka shows no signs of urgency at all.

“Half an hour ‘til you’re meant to be testing how I fight you with a knife, man. Pretty sure you wanna be awake before then.” Laughing lightly to himself, he sets to heating water before turning to lean his back against the bench, watching Hisoka more carefully. “Dunno how you manage sleeping in places like that.”

“’s warm and dry at least… no snow.” Well, yeah, that’s pretty obvious since they’re inside a house. An old and pretty run down one, but a house all the same.

“Ain’t always been like that?” Hisoka shakes his head slowly, soft white hair brushing against the wood of the table as he does.

Slowly, Hisoka lifts his head, blinking at Banri before giving a large yawn. It’s good to see him actually waking up but his lips close into a slightly melancholy frown.

“Before August recruited me, I was on the street…” It’s clear he doesn’t want pity for the tale he’s telling, but that recalling those days still affects him some way.

Such is the case with most of Hisoka’s stories. He’ll tell them in a sleepy almost monotone, but his expressions give away how he truly feels about them. Stories involving his past with the other two usually involve a small twinkle shining in his eye, while tales of injuries, failed missions and his own training days are accompanied by a frown and a troubled eyebrow. This is closer to the latter, yet the memories don’t seem to trouble him as much as others do. Banri doesn’t really know what to say in response though, so he stands there in silence and waits for anything Hisoka cares to tell him to leave his lips.

“It was cold… and I was hungry. People died a lot but you could take clothes from them to get more layers for when winter came again. If you wanted food you had to steal it… if you had food and weren’t fast or strong, people stole it from you.” Despite the tragic early life that he’s revealing, something quirks Hisoka’s frown into a small smile. “I almost didn’t go with August… he tried so hard to persuade me and Chikage kept telling him to give up. If I hadn’t I would’ve died... so I’m glad I did and got to meet them.”

“You guys really loved him a lot, huh?” It’s clear that they both did and that the bonds forged between them through life or death situations are ones that were far stronger than the ones Hisoka will ever have with his own troupe at Mankai. Somehow, Banri’s coming to understand that on a personal level too. He’d gone it alone in fights as a delinquent, and while he certainly has found himself growing close to those in the company, it really feels like their circumstances right now have implemented some kind of cheat code in getting close to Hisoka.

Hisoka doesn’t respond to his question verbally, simply nodding with that little smile still on his lips. But despite just revealing more layers to his sad backstory, he seems to be handling things fine. He’s sure got a lot more strength – both mentally and physically – than one would assume, but Banri’s become very, very familiar with the extent of both the past few days. It’s probably just some kind of weird selfish desire, but as he watches him, he wants to reach out and run his fingers through that soft hair again.

“Water’s done…” Hisoka’s voice drags him from his thoughts and Banri gets back to what he walked in here for in the first place.

It’s probably strange that he’s beginning to think he’s glad it was him who was with Hisoka that night, and not just because he’s one of the few people at the company who could handle this whole thing. Yeah, nope, that’s a really stupid thought. No one wants to get caught up in something where you’re told _‘I can’t guarantee you won’t have to kill anyone’_ and to know you’ll be witnessing death again. Those facts ignite the nerves in him that he’d previously never felt, it’s just so foreign compared to the lives most people live. He can fast track how close he gets to someone via joining them for brutal training and preparation for a life threatening mission, but he can’t take away the fact he’s lived a really easy life up until this point.

\-----

Sweat soaks through his clothes and hair alike as he curses at Hisoka dodging a blow from his blade. He’s landing some of them now at least, but he’s still nowhere near his level. He shouldn’t have to resort to fighting like this but having a backup weapon in case he loses his gun is necessary. It’s far more high stakes than any fist fight with a punk though. Each time the dulled blade of the knife Hisoka’s using presses against him, he knows in real combat the strike would be debilitating, if not fatal. Gritting his teeth, he turns and secures his stance. There’s determination clear on Hisoka’s face as they lock eyes, and he knows he’s not getting off easy at all. Both their lungs cry for more air to replace that being knocked out of them by the intense fight, filling the gap between them with only the sounds of their heavy breathing as both wait to see what the other’s next move is.

He thinks he has it, as he shifts his weight to step forward, but Hisoka becomes a blur before he can fully execute the movement. He’s familiar enough with how he fights by now to know where to lean to dodge it, and where to strike with his own blade to hopefully turn this around into his own favour. They’ve been at this for close to an hour now and he’s still yet to get a win of his own. He’s getting close though, really close. Tightening his grip around his own knife, he changes the direction his weight is going in, lunging forwards and-

The sound of his blade connecting with Hisoka’s reaches his ears and before he’s managed to pull his arm back to disconnect them, there’s a knee in his stomach. Slipping from his sweaty hand, he hears his knife fall to the ground as he blocks a kick with his arm. Hisoka’s not holding back at all; every move he’s making, Banri is barely managing to keep on top of. Heart pounding in his ears, he feels adrenaline rush through him as a blow of his own in response is only barely dodged. He needs to get his own knife back or Hisoka’s out of his hand to truly win this. Gathering his thoughts and his options, he flits through them fast; Hisoka isn’t going to go easy on him for a few moments so that he can figure out the best way to get him on his back with a dull blade at his throat.

The way Hisoka had gotten Banri to the ground during their first day of training settles in his mind. Adjusting his stance, he acknowledges that he has a blade to dodge and a far better trained man attacking him, but he can see a path to victory through it. Maybe he’s not recreating it perfectly as he moves, he’s not as fast as Hisoka and his height works at a disadvantage, but from the way Hisoka has to quickly change direction mid movement to avoid falling easily into his trap, he’s pretty confident.

Confidence as it turns out, is a foolish thing to have when up against an ex-field agent. Though while he doesn’t achieve in getting things to go perfectly along with his plan, he does manage to unbalance Hisoka. There’s a thud as both their bodies connect with the floor beneath them, himself atop Hisoka as they fall. He doesn’t have a grip on his limbs though, and feeling Hisoka’s body twist in his hold, he knows the end result of their sparring is definitely not the win he’d hoped for. Cool metal presses to his throat as he rests his own hand against Hisoka’s. In a real fight he’d have bled out long before managing to starve Hisoka of air but it’s the closest he’s gotten to a victory yet.

Again the only sounds between them are their breathing, the moment not holding the same tension as when they’d locked eyes in the middle of their fight but definitely holding some degree of it. He doesn’t feel like he can just move quite yet either, staring down at Hisoka as he tries to catch his breath, he tries to capture from his expression alone just how well he thinks he’s done. Banri knows he’s done damn well considering where he was just four days ago but something in him wants that approval from the man he’s straddling and pinning to the floor. With his hair in disarray and sweat drenching himself as much as Banri, Hisoka’s expression is almost unreadable but his state is revealing something new about him regardless.

More than just out of order, Hisoka’s hair splays out fully beneath him, almost completely off his face. For the first time since meeting him, Banri’s allowed a glimpse of his usually hidden eye. Though still partially obscured by a few stubborn strands of his fringe, the pale colour of it is obvious. It doesn’t emote like his other one does either, but the realisation that Hisoka is blind in one eye isn’t the first thought that strikes him. It’s that seeing his full face like this, he’s beautiful. A laughing sound leaves his lips almost as soon as the thought registers in his mind. What’s he even thinking right now? He should be annoyed by the fact that he’s still barely able to touch him and Hisoka’s been fighting with a huge gap in his field of vision this whole time. But he’s not. He’s impressed, and he’s curious. He doesn’t ask though, that’s a story for Hisoka to share if he cares to.

Moving off of him, he pushes himself to his feet and makes the move to where their water sits.

“You’re getting it…” Turning back to look at him as he takes his bottle in hand, he catches Hisoka pushing himself into a sitting position and sliding the knife into the holster at his thigh. “I’ll tell Chikage to fight you later… he’s stronger but not as fast, you can test how you are against someone you aren’t used to.”

Hisoka doesn’t bother to brush his hair over his face again until he’s finished speaking. It’s always been so stubbornly covered at Mankai that Banri’s fairly certain Azami only ever gets to put make-up on half his face. Just like with the stories Hisoka’s been sharing with him, it feels like a part of him that he wouldn’t have been able to see if it weren’t for the circumstances they’re involved in.

\-----

“In three days time the same lot that targeted Hisoka will be attempting an information retrieving job.” Chikage’s voice fills the room as he speaks. Banri has no idea how he managed to get his hands on his information but from the way fatigue is starting to show even on Chikage’s face, he can tell it hasn’t been easy. “It seems the hit on Hisoka isn’t the main objective for them being in Japan at all, it’s very likely he was recognised from play posters. News he’d been sighted was sent back to their headquarters and it was added on as a supposedly easy job.”

There’s a small scoff from Hisoka beside him on the couch and Banri finds his own lips quirking up into something resembling a smile. There is no way killing Hisoka is easy at all, he was playing double agent with them, they should know well what he’s capable of.

“It’s a team of three remaining, we’ll let two live but if it’s to be believed that it’s actually you, given they know you can still put up a fight, we’ll need a casualty.” He thought by now he’d be used to things like this, but it’s still unnerving how calmly Chikage talks about planning someone’s death. “Given what Hisoka’s told me and the details I can pull from files and mission reports, they’re likely to send all three in rather than following our own structure. Meaning you’ll be outnumbered, but that shouldn’t be an issue; they aren’t expecting us. We’ll go in early, two hours before they’re supposed to arrive and set up. Banri, you’ll replace the security guard. We’ll get him unconscious and off-site before anything happens. During the mission I’ll refer to you just as ‘Guard’ rather than assigning you another name.”

Chikage pauses to adjust his glasses before swiping down further on the tablet screen he’s holding.

“Let them see you but not get close to you. They’re aware of the presence of a guard but rather than drugging them, it seems they learn their patrol routes and times to slip into areas unguarded.” From the tone in Chikage’s voice, Banri has a feeling that way of doing things doesn’t align with what he’s used to doing himself. “Hisoka, we also need you to be seen – by all three of them. They need to get a good enough view of you to confirm your identity before you move on. Don’t confront them, though. Let them see you and run past once they’ve recognised you.”

It sounds risky but Chikage seems to have full faith in Hisoka’s speed and Banri completely believes in it as well.

“Banri, the agent they’ll station to ensure you’re not catching onto them is your target. I’ll be watching through the cameras and give you the go ahead once Hisoka’s close enough. You need to get him in a position where we can stage him and Hisoka both having died in combat. I’d like to say you can merely inject him and put him to sleep but this risk of approaching like that is too high. I’ll jam their comms and you’ll imbolise him. One knee should be enough to stop him getting around easily but if he’s stubborn take out the other one too. They’ll likely hear the gunshot but we need that to believably be from Hisoka.”

Now that the plan’s starting to involve his actual role, the plan Chikage’s dictating feels all the more real. He’s been training for just this, but being told so plainly that he’ll be taking out a man’s knees shortly before that same man dies by Hisoka’s hand is causing nausea to stir. As he tries not to show that on his face, a hand silently closes around his own. Slender but with newly forming calluses, he knows it’s Hisoka’s. Somehow, it’s comforting. He hates that he needs comfort in this situation and that it’s clear enough that Hisoka’s picked up on it but he’s not going to refuse the gesture. If Hisoka can open up to him like he has, he’s going to do his best not to hide the fact that yeah, this is still a little much for him.

“Hisoka, once you reach them, you need to finish the job and crush the blood pack on your chest. Play dead. Banri, you’ll have set up in advance what will look to the authorities like a fire caused by an appliance in the break room. Once that starts and the fire alarm begins going off, they may try to collect Hisoka and their own man’s body. You need to play the role of security guard again, rush through to the area they’re in pretending you’re ensuring the building’s clear as you leave. Their training in this situation will be to just get out of there given the turn of events. If not though, Hisoka, you’ll have to wake up and take them out. Do not actually fall asleep.”

“You say that as though I’ve fallen asleep on a mission before…” Hisoka quips back from beside him.

“I say that because you have.” As Chikage retorts, Banri hears Hisoka give a small huff.

“Once.”

“Three times, I can go into specifics if you want.” The argument breaking out in the middle of such a grim sounding mission brief isn’t too surprising given the two of them and what he’s learned, but it does surprise him that it helps lighten the mood somewhat.

“Then I’ll tell Banri about when you walked into August’s lab and-”

“So returning to the remainder of the plan.” Cutting Hisoka off swiftly, Chikage pretends as though the argument never happened. “Hisoka, I’ll have a body for you to replace yourself with before you leave, then get out of there yourself. There’s a utility closet in the corridor where this will be happening, you’ll have him stored there in advance.”

“Not the security guard I hope.” Banri finds himself speaking without even realising he is.

“No, he’ll wake up just outside of the fire's reach, very confused but unharmed. His body will be too large to replace Hisoka’s and then we’d have to arrange a corpse for himself as well.” Chikage’s answer is incredibly logical and Banri would have come to that conclusion himself if he’d been able to think past the fact that this part of the plan is incredibly chilling. “We’ll let them deal with the aftermath however they wish to; likely they’ll find a way to silence news being released of the bodies being found with weapons and halt any investigation into their identities lest their own man be traced back to them.”

“You’ve gotten better at planning, Chikage.” Hisoka speaks up, the previous bickering tone completely gone from his voice as he gives a rare compliment to Chikage.

“I had to, didn’t I?” Despite the fact Banri has so many questions following the rough briefing, he doesn’t feel like he can speak up. “I’ll give you both detailed information on your roles tomorrow morning. Banri, get an early night.”

As Chikage stands and regards the two of them, he gives a strange look of amusement as his eyes pass between them. Hisoka’s hand doesn’t disengage with his own, even as it becomes clear their meeting is over. Rather than that, he slumps against him, body weight hitting Banri’s side as he dozes off. Chikage doesn’t stay though, merely turning around with his strange, knowing smile on his face and going back to the set up he’s been working at for days on end. Chikage definitely is aware of something that Banri isn’t but he can’t find it in himself to ask what given all the information that’s rushing through his brain. While his body feels exhausted and despite Chikage’s words, he’s really not so certain he’ll be able to find sleep. Hisoka resting against him like this though, is at least pretty nice.


	4. Chapter 4

Brushing his hair up into a low ponytail, he pulls the hair tie from his lips and loops it around his hair as Chikage and Hisoka re-run over the specifics of Hisoka’s role in the plan. It’s like doing a play in a way; they all have scripts, parts to play and the feeling in his chest isn’t that dissimilar to how he feels before stepping out onto the stage. There is a lot different about it; mainly that no matter who he is on stage, things just remain there. What he’s doing tonight is completely different from that. No matter what precautions they take to ensure they won’t be caught, he’s walking out of the mission having aided in someone’s murder and having set a building on fire. The fact Hisoka and Chikage have fallen into their usual banter beside him is pretty impressive but it’s the one thing that stops this all from feeling too surreal. 

“You’re not taking those in with you.” Irritation heavy in his voice, Chikage plucks a bag of marshmallows from Hisoka’s arms. 

“It’s a snack for while I wait...” Shoving his hand into the bag, Hisoka pulls out a handful of marshmallows as Chikage pulls them out of the way.

“There’s going to be investigations happening on what remains of the building after tonight, you’re not going to leave evidence of yourself around like that.” Despite the fact that them acting normal helps with how he feels going into things, it can’t completely quell any lingering unease about what he’s about to do. It’s not that he thinks he won’t absolutely ace his part in things, but it is a lot to be staring down the barrel of. 

As Hisoka shoves the last of his marshmallows into his mouth with a defiant stare at Chikage, Banri’s eyes wander over the rest of his body. Unlike his own get up, meant to pass him off as a security guard once he’s pulled the real guard's jacket off his body and got it on himself, Hisoka is dressed for action. All in black, there are holsters everywhere that there’s space for them, from hiding underneath his long black coat to being secured around his lean thighs. Compared to his usual oversized sweaters and comfort focused clothes, it’s definitely a contrast to how he’s used to seeing him. Banri is armed himself, but having to conceal everything beneath a hoodie going in and the uniform jacket of the security guard after that, he doesn’t get to be anywhere near as kitted out. That’s sweet though, nothing wrong with getting to appreciate how it all looks on someone else instead. Hisoka would look right at home as the main character in some espionage action game.

“I’ll get you a week's supply of gourmet marshmallows after this is all done.” Speaking to Hisoka, he flashes a smile. It’s probably a little shaky but in response, Hisoka’s own lips quirk upwards.

“Don’t promise things like that, he’ll bankrupt you.” Sighing, Chikage turns to pick up a case of equipment instead. 

“Banri’s so much nicer than Chikage is…” There’s a twinkle in his eye as he speaks.

“As if I’d want to be nice to you. Help me get this stuff into the van, you two. We need to get a move on.”

Silence falls between the three of them as they load up the van that’s been living in the hideout’s garage. With how unused the place was before the three of them arrived, he’d been amazed when it started with no issue when Chikage had brought it around to the front. As the doors open and he’s greeted with an inside filled with screens and other high tech looking items, it makes a little more sense that it had no issue starting. While he’s certain that a lot of the equipment inside was here from the get go, the monitors already tuned into security camera feeds lining one wall suggest that while he’s been busy training with Hisoka, this had been one of Chikage’s own projects. 

His mouth goes a little dry as he steps inside and places the black case he’s carrying down on the floor. The video feeds show the outside parameter of the building they’re headed to, as well as a number of inside views. This is really it then, just over two hours from now he’ll be the one walking the guards route, rather than the man that currently moves in slightly jolting movements on the screen. 

“Banri, I’ll get you to watch the past half hours footage on as we drive to ensure we haven’t missed anything, I’ve been keeping watch all day but having to rig you two up meant I couldn’t keep as close an eye on things as I would have liked.” Banri’s thankful he did take the time, while he could have figured out how the tiny earpiece, microphone and body camera he’s wearing work, he’s learning that there are some things in this world that are best left to the pros. “Sleepyhead, keep watching the live footage. Make sure he doesn’t fall asleep, Banri.”

Just like that the doors are closing them in and Chikage’s making his move for the front of the van. Taking a seat and reaching for the mouse, he tries to ignore the butterflies forming in his stomach as the van starts to move. Beside him Hisoka flops down himself and fixes his eye upon another screen. No nerves show from him, but there’s a quiet determination on his face as he takes in the video footage. No matter how used to missions he is, he does have a lot resting on this all going well. Pulling this off means he gets his freedom back, even if he’ll have to step off the stage for a while after. Getting this wrong could mean he continues to be pursued at best, and death at worst. He’s not going to let that happen though. Everything is going to go in accordance with Chikage’s plan. Reaching out with one hand as he presses play with the other, it falls upon Hisoka’s shoulder, squeezing it in comfort as he takes the role of reassuring the other.

\-----

Slow, lazy movements characterise the way the security guard walks through the building. There’s no real vigilance about how he moves and it makes things all the easier for Banri to tail him. The guy’s mind is definitely on something else and not with his job tonight which is a big positive. Not that getting a needle in his neck would be a hard task regardless. Coming up to crossroad in the hallways, he lets his hand close around the syringe in his pocket and pushes the cap off the end of the needle. The cameras are all looping footage from the night before and Chikage’s jamming the current night’s feed from being broadcast to anyone except himself, as long as he can act before the guard turns to see him, he’ll get this taken care of without anyone seeing his face.

_ “Strike fast and don’t doubt yourself.” _ He doesn’t need to be told that by Chikage but he can’t talk back to him without giving his location away to his target. 

The guard pauses, sweeping his torch down one hallway, and then the next and with a rush of adrenaline, Banri moves to strike. The gap is closed fast, his heart racing, and before the guard can so much as turn around he’s in striking distance. One precise stab and then depress the end of the syringe. Easy. A pained gasp reaches his ears as he makes the move and feels the needle easily sink into the man’s skin. In the moment that it takes for him to get his thumb pressing down and the liquid pushing into his system, he notices a hand reaching for a radio. The guard isn’t going out as fast as he thought he would. Grabbing the hand that’s trying to get out an SOS of some form, he holds him still, a familiar thrill of a fight won passing through him as he feels his body finally slump. It’s not the end though and unlike the street fights he’d won, where the passing satisfaction had quickly been drowned out by an irritation at the easy win he’d taken, the adrenaline that has started pumping through him remains. That’s what’s going to get him through this and the things he has to do tonight.

Making sure the radio is indeed off, he hefts the man’s body over a shoulder. He’s heavy, but it’s nothing he can’t handle.

“Alright, he’s out. My path to the van still clear?” 

“All clear.” Chikage’s voice speaks into his ear again. “Stop dozing off, you’re going in as he comes out.”

“I know…”

Now that things are in motion, it is like a video game mission in a way, or like a really intensely themed escape room. Even as he’s playing out his part in the plan, it still doesn’t quite feel real. There’s a moment, though, as he lays down the unconscious guard in the back of the van and catches sight of his face that a strange guilt twists through him. Unlike the others they’ll be dealing with tonight, this guy had no idea what to expect. It’s not like Chikage and Hisoka had much choice about becoming agents and he doubts the guys they’ll be meeting soon had much of a say either, but at least they’re used to that world. The guard is just like Banri, some guy who happened to get caught up in this shit. That isn’t something he can dwell on. He knows that. At least no matter what kind of questioning and investigation this guy has to go through afterwards, he’s out of any real harm’s way. Pulling the jacket off his arms and tugging it out from underneath his body, he slides it on in place of his hoodie. He needs to get back in there and continue playing his role.

Chikage and Hisoka both are near silent as he makes his way back inside the property. By now Hisoka should be in place and waiting. All Banri has to do is set up the fire waiting to happen and then follow the usual security route. It’s all just easy so far, like everything in life usually is, but sliding a hand underneath the jacket he lets his fingers dance over the shape of one of the guns strapped to his side and reminds himself that the hard part is yet to come. Filling the time as he wanders through the hallways and grounds, he gets a good idea of just why the guard had been doing so slowly and carelessly. It’s a boring job, and if he wasn’t left with the specifics of what he has left to do running through his mind, he might be losing it from the boredom. 

_ “Targets are approaching, wake up. Give them ten minutes before you act. We need them to be tailing the guard before you do.” _

While he knows Chikage will let him know when he’s being followed, he finds himself listening keenly to his surroundings. Nothing yet, no voices or footsteps reach him, only the sound of his own breathing. Despite the time cue given to Hisoka by Chikage, he feels like another hour passes as he continues to walk his route, fingers skirting under his jacket occasionally to make sure the gun he’s reaching for is in place. Two guns and a knife are strapped to his body but all going well he’ll only have to make the one shot. His aim is great, there’s no reason for him to mess up there at all. 

_ “Stop touching your weapons, you look suspicious.” _ His hand stills as Chikage’s order reaches him. Ah, right, yeah, that’s probably a stupid thing to be doing.  _ “December, get ready to move. Guard, you’re being approached. December I’ll give the word to act in approximately five minutes.” _

Hearing the codename for Hisoka fall from Chikage’s lips instead of his current name is bizarre. To Banri he’s always been Hisoka but he supposes to Chikage he’s always been December. Perhaps the Hisoka Banri’s gotten to know as they’ve trained together is December, but no matter how much more he’s learning about him and the new side he’s seen, it feels weird to think of him as anything but Hisoka. A quiet sound reaches his ears and snaps him back to the present, a footstep. Trying not to be obvious about how he inhales to try and steady himself, he doesn’t let himself miss a step in his walking. 

_ “Turn the next two rights up ahead, use the few metres you’ll have to arm yourself before he rounds the corner. I’ll give the word for when you shoot.”  _

All right, sweet, he’s got this. It’s all as easy as Chikage makes it sound right? This is what he’s been training for and he’s not going to mess it up. There’s no chance to mess it up, the man behind him will also have a gun so if he doesn’t pull things off, it’s his life on the line. That isn’t something to be thinking about or considering. It’s all going to go well, he has to keep telling himself that. Turning the first right corner and sweeping his torch over the new hallway, he spots the coming turn that Chikage’s talking about. It’s not far ahead at all. Adrenaline flows through him as he approaches the corner. Hisoka is taking care of his side of things perfectly and Banri will do the same, even if he has to ignore the fact that his hands are shaking slightly as he approaches his next turn. He needs to keep himself under control, there’s no way he can fuck it all up here. They’ll get these guys thinking he’s dead and after a bit of time laying low, Hisoka can go back to normal life.

_ “December’s almost in place.” _

Three steps until the corner. He can hear the faint sounds of movement behind him about five metres back. That’s more than enough time to get himself armed. 

Two.

One.

As soon as he’s around the corner he pulls the gun from its holster and pockets the torch. The low lighting is just enough that he’ll be able to make out the man’s shape as he approaches. Readying himself to shoot as soon as the man’s around the corner, he holds his gun in front of his chest and listens for Chikage’s signal. He can feel his heart pounding, it’s so different from shooting targets with Hisoka by his side. Steadying his breathing, he counts as he inhales and exhales. He’s got this, it might be different than when training but the gun in his hands is the same as the one he’s been practicing with and the man tailing him suspects nothing. There’s no way Settsu Banri’s going to mess things up here, just like everything else, this is easy, right? The growing nerves in him don’t exist, he can’t let himself acknowledge them.

_ “Guard, now.” _

Turning around and taking in the shape of the man who’s rounded the corner, he brings his gun into position. His target is moving. The second he turns around, the agent is aware that something’s up. There’s nothing for it. Moving target or not, he pulls the trigger. He doesn’t take the time to see if his shot connects. He knows it didn’t. Preparing for a second shot he finds his mind somehow working far more methodically. He knows if he doesn’t make this, he’s a goner. He needs to have it connect.

_ “Calm down, aim and shoot again.” _

He doesn’t respond to Chikage’s words, certain this time that he’s got a good shot, and pulls the trigger again. Pain blossoms through his left arm as he does, white hot agony filling it as a bullet connects with his upper arm. Despite doing his best to ignore it, he can’t help but give a grunt of pain in response. His body wants for him to stop, to baby the wound and to let himself process the pain but in the situation he’s in he knows he’s a goner if he lets himself acknowledge it. Squinting his eyes, he tries to keep any wetness threatening to form at bay and keep his vision focused. His target is down and unable to move but his gun is still in his hand and while Banri succeeded in taking his ability to walk, he still has full use of the weapon. Something that he’s not going to risk him keeping, even though Hisoka should be more than capable of staying out of shot regardless. Gritting his teeth as he brings a third bullet into the chamber, another gunshot sounds. The gun of the other man falls to the floor as his arm goes limp. 

“He got me in the arm, I think it just grazed me but holy fuck.” His tone conveys the pain he feels far more than he expects it to. He’s taken some nasty hits in fights before but they don’t remotely compare to the throbbing pain demanding his attention right now.

_ “Are you still okay to continue?” _

“Yeah I’ll be sweet, hurts like a bitch but I’ll manage. He’s worse off, I think once in the leg and once in the arm. He’s pretty useless.”

_ “Perfect. Just hold out a little longer.” _

_ “I’ll be there soon.” _

Hisoka’s voice joining in gives him a bit of relief, at least his part of things is going completely to plan. He sounds as though he’s running, something that Banri himself finds himself doing as he makes his way down the end of the hall and makes a turn to head for the break room. He doesn’t let himself think too much about the shots he’s just fired, nor the pain in his arm. He needs to be in place for the next part. A gunshot fires from somewhere behind him, followed by a second. Banri’s heart skips a beat at hearing them.

_ “He’s down.”  _

Hisoka’s shots are so much more efficient than Banri’s own. Stepping through the door of the break room, he feels fatigue suddenly wash over his body. It’s as though being out of the direct line of fire has his brain telling him it’s okay to feel the toll the bullet wound has taken on his body. He isn’t safe yet though, not at all. Grimacing as he brings a hand up to his arm, it comes away dripping blood. He’s going to be the next one to be receiving Chikage’s medical attention; hopefully Hisoka gets out of this without needing it too. Hopefully it doesn’t leave him with any permanent damage. At the very least, the scar will probably be cool. 

_ “December’s playing dead, other targets are on their way to him, start the fire.” _

He doesn’t have to be told twice. Plugging in the altered cable, smoke starts to rise from it immediately, a flare of flame following as it quickly begins to grow in size. Perfect. Pulling the torch from his pocket he makes his way from the room, again gritting his teeth at a new flash of pain through his arm as he breaks into a run.

The fire alarms sound throughout the building only moments later, but no sprinklers come on to douse the flames. While he’s doing a good job of out running the fire, he knows that taking too long could see him getting caught up in the blaze himself. He needs the go ahead from Chikage to make his move though. Coming to stand just around the corner from where he knows Hisoka and the target’s bodies lay, he tries to keep his breathing down as his lungs beg for more oxygen than he can give them. It must be the result of having been injured, he doesn’t usually get exhausted this easily.

_ “Guard, now.” _

Torch in hand he picks up the running once more. He can hear the crackling of the fire starting to reach his ears, the blaze accelerating quickly and making its way through the building faster than he’d quite expected.

“Fire! Everyone out! I heard sounds from around this area! The break room’s on fire, get out!” Calling out loudly and using every bit of projection he’s learned from standing on stage, he makes sure his voice carries. Two shadows turn and make a run for it as he makes his way back into the hallway he’d been shot in and as he comes to stand by Hisoka’s side, he reaches down with his good arm to pull him to his feet. He can’t make out details well in the low lighting but from what he can see of the fake blood covering Hisoka’s chest, the special effects job was convincing.

“You okay?”

“Better than you are…” Hisoka retorts, head tilting to Banri’s wounded arm. “You should keep going, I need to get the body out.”

“Nah I’ll help, it’ll be faster.” He gets what looks like a strange look from Hisoka at that, before Hisoka just shrugs. While he’s still got some adrenaline remaining, he wants to help out where he can.

_ “Guard, get out of there, you’re wounded. December, act fast.” _

There’s a shove on his back from Hisoka as Chikage speaks, pushing him in the same direction the other agents had fled and he realises he really doesn’t have a choice. Chikage and Hisoka are determined not to let him do the real dirty work and he’s pretty thankful for that really. A utility closet opens as he sprints from the room and as he glances back, he captures a glimpse of Hisoka hauling the corpse from it just before he loses sight of him completely.

The heat of the fire’s catching up to him as he runs, sweat dripping down his face as he heads for an exit from the building. All he can think of is the fact Hisoka is still behind him, there’s no slowing the blaze down, and if he doesn’t catch up to him soon then he’s going to be caught up in the middle of it. He should be prioritising himself but he can’t just do that. Hisoka’s done far more dangerous missions and this probably isn’t that high stakes for him all things considered. Despite that, Banri picks the stupid option. Turning sharply on his heel, he changes direction right as he reaches the door he’s supposed to be exiting. The roar of flames is louder than even his panting breaths but despite his instincts screaming at him to get out of there, he finds himself running back towards the flames. He needs to know Hisoka’s going to be safe.

Smoke reaches his nose as he breaks into a sprint, filling the air oppressively. He doesn’t know how well this place is built or anything but he wouldn’t be surprised if it started to fall to the ground before long, trapping anyone left inside.

“Hi- December, how much longer.”

Just as he speaks a flash of black charges towards him from down the corridor. Face breaking into an immediate smile he turns back and picks up the pace himself. Hisoka will probably overtake him but he’s not slow himself. Footsteps fall inline just behind him as the door comes into view again and all he feels is relief. They did it, they actually made it.

“Right behind you…”

“I know.” He half laughs the words out, relief at them both reaching the door and making their way through it fills him completely. Nothing else that he’s had to do tonight even registers as they make their way towards where the van is parked. It’s a giddy feeling. Hopefully with this, they’ve secured Hisoka his normal life back.

Behind them the fire continues to grow, a bright beacon in the dull night as the flames begin to lick the sky. Reaching the van, he turns to rest his back against it, eyes taking in the blaze as he starts to catch his breath.

“We did it..”

Hisoka doesn’t respond how he thinks he might. There’s a thrill and joy filling them both and he can read it on Hisoka’s face too. He doesn’t expect his face to keep coming closer though, nor for the other to rise up onto his tip toes and lean in. His lips meeting his own catches him by surprise. He can feel the leftover adrenaline and relief pouring from Hisoka’s lips to his own in a kiss that is somehow a lot more natural than he would have expected it to be. Not holding back at all he returns it in kind. Compared to other kisses he’s had in his life there’s something about the one they’re sharing that feels so different. It’s raw and honest and holds a slightly heated desperation to it. 

They probably shouldn’t be taking time to kiss right now, but it just feels like the right thing to do. Lifting his arms to wrap around Hisoka’s waist, a shock of pain stops him. Ah, shit. A hiss escapes his lips as he’s reminded of his wound and Hisoka’s mouth falls back from his own.

“If you two are going to do that then wait until we’re back at the hideout.” Chikage doesn’t come through his ear piece this time, but instead from Chikage stepping out of the van himself. “Banri got shot and the authorities will be headed here soon.”

“Ah…” Hisoka’s eyes drop to Banri’s left arm. 

“It’s all good, probably not too bad.” Or so he hopes anyway. He has a feeling that once his adrenaline fades, any mental scars tonight has caused will haunt him more than the one on his arm. The reality of it all is slowly starting to dawn on him and the most he can do in the moment is shove it down and keep acting like he’s fine. “Though I dunno what we’re gunna do about the security guy getting his jacket back since it’s covered in my blood.”

That’s one thing they didn’t consider when sending Banri in wearing his actual uniform. The back of the van open, Chikage’s already starting to lift the still unconscious man into his arms.

“Worse things could have happened. He’ll be confused anyway.” From what Banri’s heard of past missions from Hisoka, he knows a lot worse has happened than a ruined item of clothing and a non-life threatening bullet wound. “You two wait in the van for when I return. Banri don’t do anything stupid with that arm.”

As the two of them watch Chikage carry the guard back up towards the burning building, Hisoka’s fingers slide between Banri’s and his head falls against the shoulder of his good side. 

“Hey, no napping out here. C’mon, let’s get in the van, you can nap on the way back.” Still leaning on him, Hisoka nods his head. 

Yet again there’s such a stark contrast between Hisoka’s normal personality and the killing machine he was trained to be. Banri’s glad to have met all the sides of Hisoka now, but out of all of them, he prefers the sleepy and slightly bratty Hisoka that he gets to be when he can just be himself. He doesn’t really know where they stand after that kiss but from the way his heart flutters slightly thinking back on it, he has hopes that it wasn’t just a one off post mission celebration. Not that he’s really in a place to think too much about things in the first place. The more time that passes, the dizzier he’s starting to feel and he’s fairly certain that can be attributed to the bloodloss.

“How’s your arm…?” Hisoka’s voice carries concern in its lazy tone as Banri sucks in a pained breath while climbing into the van.

“Probably a lot worse than I thought it was when in there.” The laugh that comes out of him is dry. “Nothin’ compared to what you’ve been through though.”

Taking a seat inside, he feels Hisoka’s hands reaching up to him and starting to peel the jacket from his arm. It’s like a reversal of how this all began. He’s now the one being tended to as Hisoka slowly pulls fabric from blood that’s started to congeal and narrows his eyes at the wound. 

“Howsit look?” To him it just looks like a mess of blood and torn open flesh; just like Hisoka’s knife wound, it’s not something of a calibur that he’s used to dealing with. Despite the pain and light-headness telling him that it’s indeed his arm that he’s looking at, it’s hard to completely comprehend.

“It’ll heal fine,” Moving away from him for a moment, Hisoka reaches for what’s clearly a first aid kit. “...probably.”

Banri can’t help but give a small laugh at that. As Hisoka starts to do what he can within the confines of the van, Banri tries to move his mind a little away from the reality of the state of his arm. While he really could have done without everything to do with this spy stuff happening in his life, and he definitely is going to have to put in the work to catch up on what he’s missed at university, there are some parts of it that he’s glad he got to experience. Not too many if he’s being completely honest. No matter how much of a thrill seeking delinquent he used to be, there’s a huge difference between that and pulling a trigger on someone, even if learning to shoot and use a knife effectively were pretty sweet. Things like how much closer he’s gotten to Hisoka though? He’s thankful for that and if the kiss they shared tonight is a sign of things to come, then that’s something he looks forward to exploring.

**Author's Note:**

> I'll update with a link to the accompanying art when possible.


End file.
